Some of the most striking vignettes have very subtle themes running through them. It could be as simple as orange, pink and black showing up here and there in a painting or book cover. Others are more obvious, like an assortment of objects representing the elements (wood, metal, a fountain, for example). There are no hard-and-fast rules when putting an assortment of objects together. The operative word here is "assortment." That means that collections, like a prized porcelain owl collection, shouldn't be displayed together. Don't get us wrong -- we love owls! But if you want to show them off, you're better off selecting one or two of them. So, go easy; otherwise, your vignette might evoke the taxidermied lobby of the Bates Motel. Which is fine, if you're intentionally creating an Alfred Hitchcock vignette, and even then you'll need to mix your owls with a with a couple retro matchbooks, a pair of dainty gloves, a stage knife and an old suitcase. Hmm, we think we may just have this year's Halloween vignette in the making...